Dorathen Better Late Then Never

Limerculer A waste of 90 minutes of my life

Ogosmith Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Anoushka Slater While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

Mike Beranek This proto-Local Hero creation, and Wiskey Galore styled film has a perfect mix of ingredients like zany visual gags, class- humour, poking fun of Americans humour and at the English humour plus a dog-eared anti-hero and not to forget stunning Scottish scenery. There's also a tender moment with the singular Yankie character Marshall and a local girl as he reaches some accommodation with all the madness around him. The denouement is predicable on a human level but also has a little twist. Like the trip on the good ship Maggie itself though, it's not the destination or the course plotted that matters - it's the remarkable journey and the salt-of-the-earth ship's company.

edwagreen Perhaps, one grade level above awful is this 1954 film where Paul Douglas is fooled when he ships cargo on an old freight with quite a motley crew on board.First problem is that it was practically impossible to understand those Scottish brogues. The men spoke as if they had hot potatoes in their mouths. Ditto for the young lad whose Scottish accent was made even worse by his being rather nasal.Douglas was not allowed in this part to show how irate he could usually become in motion pictures. We never get the opportunity to see his wife as we only see him on the telephone with her. Evidently, theirs is a troubled marriage, just like the entire film.Douglas shows some compassion by film's end by the actions he takes to save this broken down ship.

Rueiro Until last night, I had seen all of the Ealing-Michael Balcon comedies but this one, of which I knew nothing until just a few days ago. I found the first 15-20 minutes so boring and anything but amusing that I nearly stopped watching it there, but then the "subway" sequence got a few laughs out of me and so I decided to go along. Even if this film does not stand among the funniest ones in the series it really had me laughing my head off at a few scenes: the poaching, Pusey being locked up at the police station, and the Maggie's crew discussing where to set course for after being spotted by Marshall from the air. I didn't know Paul Douglas before, and at first I thought I had missed a second or two in the opening titles because he looks like Herbert Marshall. I much liked his performance and totally sympathised with him at his misfortunes caused by that bunch of bumbling idiots from the boat. The cabin boy is the only member of the idiotic crew who has a bit of sense and wits about himself, although I have to admit that I felt pity of the skipper when Marshall tells him he has bought out the Maggie and will see her to a scrapyard after the voyage is over. That moment touched me because even if the skipper is an idiot the Maggie is his means of livelihood and it also is all he has in the world. Marshall's decision of losing his cargo in order to save the Maggie at the end stands out of credibility though, since the man has been losing loads of money ever since the crazy voyage began and saving the ship will gain him nothing. The skipper had already taken some cash in advance for the job and he had just accepted the fact that the boat was lost to the ravages of the sea. Why should Marshall then sacrifice his cargo like that after hating the skipper's guts all along? He could just save his cargo like the skipper tells him and then pay the man the rest of the money so he could buy himself a new boat. But despite of the improbable ending, I enjoyed this nice little comedy.

philiphatfield "The Maggie" represents the best of the gentle scots comedies of the 50s. In my opinion it is a better film than "Whisky Galore" by the same Director. Many of the locations in the film are little changed such as the splendid crinan canal in Argyll, scotland and the island of Islay. Most of the cast are no more but Mr Pusey, the lawyer, played by Hubert Gregg hosts Thanks for the Memory, a show on British Radio 2 for afficianados of music from the 20s-40s. Hubert Gregg is an octogenerian! Of the other cast members Tommy Kearins "the wee boy" may still be alive but I have been unable to trace details. Another film in this favourite format is "Laxdale Hall" filmed at Applecross village, scotland.